August 2006

My dad was a cabinetmaker for most of his working life. Unfortunately, he plied this trade in a small, working-class town in Northwestern Ohio, a town with more farmers than investment bankers, with more machinists than venture capitalists. So there weren’t many local residents with the financial resources to hire my dad to build...

Get extra outfeed space without sacrificing precious floor space. By Eric Hedberg Pages: 84-85 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now Who says that table saws aren’t “hip?” This version of an outfeed table puts a little swing in one of the most useful but problematic tools in my shop, and...

Achieving a glass-flat surface is a lot easier than you might think. By Bob Flexner Pages: 79-83 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now After spending countless hours building a project, you naturally want the finish to be perfect. To achieve that you need to understand the one thing that separates...

Impossible? No. Impossibly easy. By John Hutchinson Pages: 74-78 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now If architect and furniture designer Alvar Aalto (Finland, 1898-1976) is considered to be one of the founding fathers of modern design, then Eileen Gray (Ireland, 1878-1976), who shared his profession and time on Earth, must...

This classic tool built civilizations. Now you can build one for yourself. By Samuel L. Peterson Pages: 72-73 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now Perhaps you have seen some of these in high-end tool catalogs, and have wondered what they are. The plumb level – also called a libella –...

Woodworking magazines present a distorted view of reality. We show ourselves working on projects using the latest and greatest tools, and it’s easy to start thinking you really need this stuff to do good work.

You can tune up your band saw to resaw veneer without expensive fences or blades. By Carl Bilderback Pages: 66-67 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now The subject most often written about in woodworking magazines is probably cutting dovetails. In second place – and not far behind – is likely...

This convertible project serves as a nice breakfast table, a handy small chest and a surprisingly comfortable place to sit. By Troy Sexton Pages: 60-65 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now When furniture was more precious to its owners, it was common for a piece to have more than one...

We spend three days with the world’s most expensive planes. Are they just jewelry? Or do they work better than your plane? By Christopher Schwarz Pages: 52-59 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now There are times when I wish I could find my first handplane. It was, by most standards,...